$432 million worldwide: Will the 3.8 out of 5 superhero film get a sequel?

That was one of the goals of Phase IV of the Marvel Cinematic Universe: to transition from the first generation of Avengers led by Iron Man and Captain America, and beyond. By introducing new characters little known to the general public.

A hero born in 1973

including Shang-Chi. He was born in December 1973, number 15 “Special Marvel Edition”, the character allows Maison des Idées to ride the wave of martial arts films and the success of the Kung Fu series. In the absence of superpowers, he possesses various forms of combat and chi (or life energy) that make him formidable.

And we’ll have to wait a little less than fifty years before we see it on the small or big screen. Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton (States of Grace) and starring Simu Liu, Awkwafina, Michelle Yeoh and Tony Leung, Shang-chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings hits theaters on September 1, 2021.

Influenced by a whole swath of Asian action cinema, with Tiger and Dragon leading the way, it presents itself as a nice surprise, allowing the MCU to take a small step forward. Which doesn’t necessarily translate at the box office, the Marvel blockbuster has already lost steam in a world where theaters are still reeling from the effects of Covid.

$432.2 million in worldwide revenue and a little under three years later, the feature film airs on TF1, while its sequel, announced at the end of 2021 at the same time as the series being produced, is in great limbo. Like the rest of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Shang-Chi in the corner?

After the release of Shang-Chi, Phase IV ended earlier than expected (after Black Panther 2), two new Avengers films were announced (Kang Dynasty and Secret Wars), success was not always at the box office, and the studio lost money. His Big Bad interpreter, Jonathan Majors, was fired after being found guilty of assault and harassment against his ex-girlfriend.

And there are rumors that Kevin Feige is taking advantage of Secret Wars and its multiverse stories to reduce the size and number of characters in the MCU, which Shang-Chi could pay a price for. According to the latest news provided by Simu Liu in July 2021, the sequel was not expected to be released until the next Avengers. So not until 2027?

Does it match the post-credits scene?

Since then, Destinee Daniel Cretton has left Avengers: Kang Dynasty to direct the script, which was reworked. But he remains, we’re told, tied to production on Shang-Chi 2, which he’s supposed to take care of after the Wonder Man series, currently filming.

Things still have time to change a dozen times and we will have to wait until we get real information. And find out if the sequel will follow the post-credit scene of the first episode, which showed the character of the hero’s sister Xialing (Menger Zhang) at the head of the Ten Rings organization.